Untitled
by n89dpt
Summary: A sample of the first chapter of a new novel-length adventure. Dumbledore is disturbed by the information he is receiving from his spies. Voldemort's army of Death Eaters is much more vast than he ever thought possible. Outnumbered three to one, he decides the only way Voldemort can be defeated is to turn his students into soldiers. An alternative to HBP.


**Chapter 1:**

"It's just not fair."

Harry cringed. Ron had really put his foot in it this time.

"Not fair?" Hermione's voice was soft at first... "Not fair!" Suddenly, her voice was hysterical and incredulous. "I get good grades and I am a good prefect; why shouldn't I be rewarded?"

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but decided to remain silent when his bushy-haired friend shot him a look that said: "if you interrupt or tell me to calm down I will bash your skull in with your Firebolt." _'Women are scary,' _Harry decided. Truth be told, Harry agreed with Hermione, it was just that every student and professor in Hogwarts appeared to be staring at them.

"Oi! You two, quieten down or you'll get us all in trouble." Katie Bell was clearer braver than Harry had given her credit for. _'Or more stupid, it's hard to tell with us Gryffindors sometimes' _he thought. To her credit, Hermione stopped arguing immediately. She was a sucker when it came to authority and in Hermione's mind the Head Girl badge on Katie's robes meant that the older girl had authority. Unfortunately, Ron was nowhere near as respecful.

"SO... WHAT!" Ron spat, leaning as far across the table towards Hermione as possible. The Stinging Hex left Hermione's wand so suddenly that Harry wagered no one in the room save for, perhaps, Professor Dumbledore, could have stopped it. Interestingly, Harry noted, Dumbledore chose not to intervene and so the hex slammed into Ron's face with a violent hiss. The red-head howled in pain. Hermione looked on with an expression that conveyed both shock and horror. Evidently, Professor McGonagall had decided enough was enough and sprung into action. She appeared at Harry's side in a matter of seconds and ordered his two friends to follow her out of The Great Hall.

Harry was deeply embarrased. _'All of this because Hermione was given a private bedroom,' _Harry thought ruefully. Professor McGonagall had sent a letter to Hermione the over summer holidays explaining that because Katie was Head Girl - and as such, was given her own private living quarters - one of the private bedrooms usually reserved for the seventh year Gryffindor prefects was not in use. Naturally, the Gryffindor Head of House decided that one of the sixth year prefects should have use of the room, lest it go to waste. Hermione, recent shouting competition excluded, is a model prefect; Ron is not. The choice was easy, any sane person would make the same decision. Even so, that did not stop Ron from carrying on like a fool when he found out he was overlooked some five hours ago on the Hogwarts Express. The two 'friends' had been fighting ever since...

Harry let out an exasperated sigh as he watched Ron and Hermione follow Professor McGonagall out of The Great Hall. A quick scan of the other house tables revealed that the majority of Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws and Slytherins found it all rather amusing. Not for the first time it seemed Gryffindor would start the year with less than zero house points. The young raven-haired man tried to conivnce himself to eat, but it was no use: he just wasn't hungry anymore. "You alright Harry?" The voice was soft and pleasant enough but it irritated Harry nonetheless. _'For the love of God, Ginny, just leave me alone!" _Harry desperately wanted to shout at the girl. _'My godfather is dead, a terrifying Dark Lord wants to kill me and my two best friends are acting like petulant children. No, I'm not fucking alright," _Harry thought darkly.

"I'm fine Ginny," he lied smoothly. Harry was spared from the dozen or so follow-up questions Ginny would inevitably ask by a sharp clinking sound. "Can I have your attention please?" The booming voice of Professor Dumbledore was as commanding as ever. "Now that you have been sorted and fed, some business must be attended to." The silence was absolute. "This year, the curriculum at Hogwatrts has changed significantly." Tentative murmurs could be heard coming from various parts of The Great Hall. In response, Dumbledore raised his hand and patiently waited for them to stop. "The Dark Lord's rebirth has forced us to reasses what we should be teaching you." Harry was stunned, and, judging by the silence, he was not alone. _'We should be prepared for what is coming... but at what cost?'_ No doubt Dumbledore had wrestled with that very question for days, if not months before coming to a decision. "We are not doing this to scare you, all we want is to make sure you are able to defend yourself, your family and your friends when the time comes." Harry instinctively looked for Ron and Hermione to gauge their reactions but realised they had not yet returned. "That is all for now," Dumbledore continued, "Prefects please show the first years to their dormitories. As for the rest of you, please make sure you are well rested for tomorrow." And, then, there was chaos. Benches scraped across the stone floor, Prefects bellowed orders to first years and noisy conversations erupted everywhere. Without even realising it, Harry found himself being swept towards the Grand Staircase by a cavalcade of Gryffindor students.


End file.
